This invention relates to smartcard electronic devices and, more particularly, to the incorporation of smartcard devices in a cellular telephone for enhanced verification, security and accessibility to data stored on the smartcard.
Smartcards are fast becoming the common media to transfer information of many types relative to banking, transportation, subscriber, health, identification, etc. Typically, smartcards are housed within a plastic card, taking the form and size, for example, of a plastic credit card. Such smartcards include a microcomputer having some form of memory for storing and processing data. When a transaction within the capability of the smartcard is to be performed, the smartcard interacts with an external system which may be, for example, an automated teller machine, a merchant's point of sale system, etc. In performing such a transaction, typically the smartcard is inserted into a card reader associated with the external system through which electrical contact is made between the card reader and the smartcard. However, such systems requiring the smartcard to come into contact with the external system suffer from the disadvantages that the smartcard must be physically inserted into the external reader, the contacts between the smartcard and the external reader must be aligned for proper signal transfer, and the contacts may become worn or dirty thereby causing unreliability through signal degradation or signal interruption.
Additionally, the incorporation of a smartcard within a plastic-type credit card presents additional problems. First, the user of a smartcard typically places a smartcard in a wallet, billfold, purse, or pocket when not in use. As a result, the plastic smartcard must be flexible in order to prevent the card from breaking. However, this flexibility requirement presents its own problem in that the electronics incorporated onto the flexible smartcard may be damaged when the smartcard is flexed. Second, it is desirable to hermetically seal the electronics within the plastic card in order to protect the electronic parts. However, this substantially increases the cost of the card. Third, small plastic smartcards are easy to misplace, lose, or steal thereby resulting in the user being without their smartcard as well as a third party having unauthorized access to their smartcard.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to incorporate the electronics associated with a smartcard into an alternate housing arrangement so as to overcome problems and disadvantages associated with flexible plastic smartcards.
Additionally, it would be desirable to provide a smartcard that does not require contact with an external reader in order to perform a transaction.